By KIM MORGAN Senior Living Correspondent |
November 8, 2012

SPECIAL OCCASIONS: Thanksgiving and other holidays are times of celebration and family gatherings. At local senior-living communities, there are many opportunities for residents to continue to celebrate with family, friends and fellow residents.

Photo By Eugene Bochkarev

FESTIVE: Whether it's traditional Thanksgiving goodies, such as turkey with all the trimmings, or just a warm and welcoming place for people to congregate, retirement communities want residents to feel at home.

Whether it's a sermon by Chaplain David Schultz at The Village at Gleannloch Farms in Spring or a potluck dinner at University Place in Houston, retirement communities across the area create a cornucopia of possibilities when it comes to Thanksgiving events for residents.

"If families are home and kids are out of school, we encourage them to visit," Pickett said. "Thanksgiving is one of the most popular days of the year for families to join us. Our elaborate and delicious menu rivals any in town."

Pickett said its 185 residents are welcome to invite family any time of the year, but the holidays are indeed a little more unique.

"This is such a special time that brings us all closer together at The Village of Tanglewood," she said, "and we look forward to seeing all of the residents' family and friends."

Helen Lewis, an 83-year-old resident of Parkway Place, said she's thankful to have family nearby. She and husband Richard, 87, have somewhere to go during the holidays, a familiar place where traditions are embraced and maintained.

Yet she also enjoys spending time with fellow Parkway Place residents; people who are friends but ultimately become family.

"I'm sure there are quite a few people here who don't have somewhere to go, and we always try to include them in what is going on here rather than having them be alone," Lewis said.

"We don't want them to be lonely on the holidays. We invite them out, or bake something and take it by their apartments. They become family, they really do."

Parkway Place puts out a Thanksgiving buffet lunch each year, but hospitality begins the minute residents move in.

"This is their home," said executive director Jimmy Johnson. "They live here. From the moment they walk in the front door, we want them to know we recognize all the holidays we can and want them to celebrate like they used to."

Whether it's traditional Thanksgiving goodies, such as turkey with all the trimmings, or just a warm and welcoming place for people to congregate, retirement communities want residents to feel at home.

"Hospitality is such an important part of what we give to residents," Johnson said. "I don't think they ever forget the hospitality part of when they used to share their homes with others. It's important for them to be able to do that here. You can come and visit your mother or your grandmother. Families are absolutely welcome."